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Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


23  WCST  MAIN  STREET 

waSm.N.Y.  14580 

(  716 )  •72-4503 


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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICIVIH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /Institut  canadien  de  m'^roreproductions  historiques 


vV 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming.  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  6t6  possible  de  se  procurer.  Las  details 
de  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-etre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique.  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite,  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  una 
modification  dans  la  m^thode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiqu^s  ci-dessous. 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


D 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 


D 


Covers  damaged/ 
Couverture  endommagee 


D 


Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagees 


D 


Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurde  et/ou  pellicul6e 


D 


Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restaur^es  et/ou  palliculees 


D 


Cover  title  missing/ 

Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


EI 


Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  d^coloreas,  tachat^es  ou  piquees 


D 


Coloured  maps/ 

Cartes  g^ographiques  en  couleur 


D 


Pages  detached/ 
Pages  detachees 


□ 


Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


n 


Showthrough/ 
Transparence 


Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 
Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 


D 


Quality  of  print  varies/ 
Qualite  inegale  de  I'impression 


D 


Bound  with  other  material/ 
Relie  avec  d'autres  documents 


D 


Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  supplementaire 


n 


n 


Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reliure  serree  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intdrieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajout^es 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  et6  film^es. 


n 


Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 

Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc  ,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure. 
etc.,  ont  6t6  film^es  ck  nouveau  da  facon  ci 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


□ 


Additional  comments;/ 
Commentaires  suppl^mentaires; 


This  item  is  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmd  au  taux  de  reduction  indiqu6  ci-dessous. 


10X 

14X 

18X 

22X 

26X 

30X 

y 

12X 


16X 


20X 


MX 


28X 


32X 


The  copy  filmed  here  has  been  reproduced  thanks 
to  the  generosity  of: 

National  Library  of  Canada 


L'exemplaire  filmd  fut  reproduit  grdce  d  la 
gdn^rositd  de: 

Bibliothdque  nationale  du  Canada 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
beginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  —^  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  {meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc.,  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  et 
de  la  nettet6  de  l'exemplaire  film^,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimde  sont  filmds  en  commengant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  film^s  en  commengant  par  la 
premidre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparattra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  etre 
fiimds  d  des  taux  de  reduction  diff^rents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  etre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich6,  il  est  film6  d  partir 
de  Tangle  supdrieur  gauche,  de  gauche  d  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n6cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mdthode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

CANNIBAL 


/#J  - 


N    NORTH    AMERICA 


Little   attention   has  been   given,  either  by  scientists  or  historians,  to 
the  evidence    for  the   existence  of  cannibalism    among  the   native   tribes 
of    North  America.     Vet    the    fact,  not  only  of  its  existence  but   oi   its 
recent  existence,  rests   upon    abundant  historic   and  archaeological  proot. 
The  Jesuit  Fathers  who  explored  Canada,  the  early  voyagers  in  the  West 
Indi-s,  the  first   visitors  of  the   Pacific  coast,  as  well  as  the  conquerors  of 
Mexico,  all  unite  in  giving  the  most  explicit  testimony  to  the  existence  of 
aboriginal  man-eating  tribes.     Brebeuf,  who   came  from  France  as  a  mis- 
sionary to  this   country  in  the  early  part  of  the  scventeeth  century,  gives 
in  his'report  for  1636  an  account  of  the  fate  of  certain  prisoners  taken 
by  the   Hurons.     After  describing  the  torture,  he  goes  on  to  say  that  "  if 
the  victim   has   shown   courage,  the  heart  was  f^rst  roasted,  cut  into  small 
pieces,  and  given  to  the  young  men  and  boys  to  increase  their  courage. 
The  body  was  then  divided,  thrown  into  kettles,  and  eaten  by  the  assem 
bly— the  head  being  the  portion  for  the  chief.     Many  of  the  Hurons  joined 
in' the  feast  with  reluctance  and  horror,  while  others  took  pleasure  in  it."-^ 
Father  Hennepin,  writing  forty  years  later,  also  speaks  of  the  Hurons  as 
practicing  cannibalism. 

The  most  powerful  and  cruel  of  the  Northern  tribes  was  the  Iroquois  ; 
and  all  testimony  seems  to  prove  that  it  was  most  addicted  to  the  habit 
of  eating  human  flesh.  The  Jesuit  missionaries  were  in  many  cases  eye- 
witnesses of  the  orgies  of  this  people.  One  of  their  feasts,  celebrating 
a  victorv  over  the  Algonquins,  is  thus  described  by  Vimont :  "  Some 
bring  wood,  others  go  in  search  of  water,  and  one  puts  the  great  kettles  on 
the  fire.  The  butchery  is  near.  They  dismember  those  they  are  going  to 
kill,  tearing  them  in  pieces,  throwing  feet  and  legs,  arms  and  heads,  in  the 
pot,  which  they  boil  with  as  much  joy  as  the  poor  captives  have^heart-ache 
in  seeing  their  companions  served  as  a  meal  to  these  wolves. 
In  a  word,  they  cat  the  men  with  as  great  an  appetite  and  more  joy  than 
hunters  eat  a  boar  or  a  deer."  + 

From  the  evidence  we  possess,  it  appears  that  no  tribe  delighted  more  in 
human  flesh  as  a  staple  article  of  food  than  the  Caribs.  inhabitants  of  one  of 
the  West  Indian  Islands.     Peter  Martyr,  who  visited  the  New  W  orld  a  tew 

*  Relations  ,/<•  /a  X.'UtM-  Fmv.ce  cu  ' Amu-f  1636,  p.  121. 

f  Relations  de  hi  Xoiiielle  J'nuuc  ai  iAinuc  1642, /.:r  Vimont.  p.  46. 


:2  CANMI1A1.I>M    IN    NORTH    AMEkiCA 

vcar>  after  its  disctn'cry  by  Columbus,  gives  a  full  aocoKunt  of  their  prac- 
tice. He  does  not  -com  liimself  to  have  witnessed  ■-  :  ■'  their  feasts,  but 
takes  the  word  of  other  explorers  who  had  sulTert.i  ;r.r:i  these  cannibals. 
••  The  wild  and  mischievous  people,"  he  writes,"  calk-d  cir.nibals.  or  Caribs. 
accustomed  to  eat  men's  flesh  (and  called  by  the  old  -sniz^ts anthropophagi \, 
molest  them  .the  explorers i  exceedingly,  invading  dietr  countr>-.  taking 
them  captive,  killing  and  eating  them  '•  -  -  *  -  .  Such  children 
as  they  take  they  geld  to  make  them  fat.  as  we  do  ccck  ciiickens  and  young 
hogs,  and  eat  them  when  they  are  well  fed.  Of  sucli  as  they  eat,  they  eat 
nr<i  the  entrails  and  extreme  parts,  as  hands,  feet,  jmnis,  neck,  and  head. 
The  other  most  fleshy  parts  they  preser\-e  in  store  is  -ae  do  bacon.  Yet 
do  thev  abstain  from  eating  women,  and  count  it  i-il-:-    ^' 

The  first  visitors  to  the  Pacif.c  coast  also  found  iriberj  of  man-eaters. 
Cook  says  that,  upon  his  landing,  the  Xootka  tribe  ::  J  :-:r:\bian  Indians 
brought  t)  him  for  sale  human  skulls  and  hands  nr.tq:::te  stripped  of  their 
flesh,  which  they  made  him  understand  they  had  t^ten,.  Some  of  the 
bones  also  bore  marks  of  having  been  on  the  fixe.*  Bancroft,  in  his 
Xatk\-  Racts  of  the  Pacinc  Coast,  c'llcs,  other  evidtr.c.  in:  the  same  line. 
Coke  speaks  of  one  of  the  most  degraded  tribes  of  ^r.^<c  Indians  eating 
dead  bodies  and  killing  their  children  for  food.^ 

The  aborigines  of  Mexico  and  Central  America  were  far  less  barbarous 
than  the  natives  of  other  parts  of  North  America.  While,  therefore, 
cannibalism  existed  among  them,  it  took  the  form  of  a  religious  ceremony. 
Prescott  asserts,  on  the  authority  of  the  Spaniards,  lliatt  the  Mexicans  were 
not  cannibals  in  the  c<xarsest  acceptation  of  the  term.  They  did  not  feed 
on  human  flesh  merely  to  gratify  a  brutish  appethe,  but  in  obedience  to 
their  religion.  Their  repasts  were  made  of  victims  whose  blood  had  been 
poured  out  on  the  altar  of  sacrifice.  .>  A  similar  statesnent  is  made  regard- 
ing the  Itzas  of  Central  America. 

Among  the  New  Mexican  Indians  the  case  was  diffeffetit.  While  tribes 
diftered  among  themselves  in  regard  to  this  practice,  with  many  human 
flesh  was  sought  as  food.  Incredible  as  it  may  seem,  at  least  one  tribe  of 
Indians  inhabiting  Texas  has  practiced  cannibalism  within  twenty-five 
years.  Mr.  J.  G.  Walker,  formerly  a  member  of  tihe  United  States  Army, 
and  now  a  resident  of  Mexico,  in  a  private  letter  to  i'ae  autht?r  gives  the 
following  interesting  facts : 

*  Peter  Martyr's  I\-  Hc^'us  Oir,utins  ,/  Or-r  X.'^w  Deradrj.     Tvrsx.  ITHKade. 
f  Cook's  l\\va^cs  A'  tfu-  Pacijh-.     Vol.  II.  p.  271. 
X  Coke's  Roihy  Mountains,  p.  275. 
5  CnntL-st ,'/ M.xiiw     Sth  Ed.  p.  ^4. 


(. anmi;al.ki:  hj  north  America 


-•'J 


I 


"  The  early  Amtrican  strttlerf  m  ^Ta-ttritjorda  Bay  were  greatly  harassed 
by  a  tiibe  of  Indians,  called  Cirmnkowas,  inhabitini;  the  bay  shore,  and 
subsistinir  chiefly  on  fi.sh  and  fv\=Siirs-.  But  they  were  known  to  ha\  c  a 
keen  relish  for  human  f^esh,  whirl,  tiiev' sometimes  added  to  their  ordinary- 
menu.  In  1S34-5  the  custom  wit.  '.luwever.  becoming;  obsolete,  and  about 
that  time  was  whollv  abolished  h-  t±ni  reiijnimr  chief.  But  there  was  a 
cognate  tribe,  a  remnant  of  whirr  -nil  exists,  which  practiced  cannibalism 
as  late,  certainly,  as  1S54.  Ai  -ziun  dme  [  was  an  officer  in  the  United 
States  Arm)-,  and  stationed  si  ?irt:  Eni^^e,  in  Texas.  The  Tonkowas.  the 
tribe  to  which  I  allude,  being  cm  nni»£  tenns  with  the  whites,  were  allowed 
to  roam  about  Western  Texa^.  imf  in  the  summer  of  1854  were  camping 
on  the  Nueces  River,  a  few  mitts- to m  the  fort.  I  was  frequently  at  their 
village,  and  on  one  occasion,  wiiin,  irrcamped  with  a  party  of  soldiers  not 
far  off,  a  returning  war-jiartv  uf  'rfic  tribe  brought  in  the  remains  of  a 
Comanche  whom  they  had  slum  aid  tlie  night  was  made  hideous,  in  a 
double  sense,  by  the  orgies  tiizn  iulowed.  During  the  niglit  the  entire 
remains  were  eaten,  princij)alryl:w-tlie  waariors.  I  do  not  think  that  the 
eating  of  human  flesh  was  ofiirc  grruiticed  by  them  at  this  time,  and  even 
on  this  occasion  it  may  have  hiiirr  iorre  more  as  an  expression  of  exulta- 
tioii  over  a  fallen  enemy  than  fir-ie  mere  satisfying  of  luuiger.  But  these 
Indians  afterwards  confessed  li' ore.  diat  formerly  their  tribe  habitually  fed 
on  human  flesh  when  the}'  couIl  liitnin  the  bodies  of  their  enemies. 

''  It  seems  inconsistent  v-ithdhi  units  E  have  just  stated,  but  it  is  nc\er- 
theless  true,  that  these  semi-nnmihais  were  less  fierce  and  blood-thir-^ty 
than  most  of  the  other  wild  Inrians^.  They  were  always  on  good  terms 
with  the  settlers,  and  made  rrtnnnon;  cause  with  them  against  the  Co- 
manches,  Kiowas,  and  other  jrritdaiir^ tribes  on  the  northern  border  of  the 
State.  '"'  ""^  ■■•  1  have  often  htzirrl  from  participants  in  some  of  these 
engagements  that  it  a\  as  the  in-'.irrabie  custom  of  their  Tonkowa  allies  to 
kave  a  feast  of  roasted  ComanchiMfbsr  dieir  battles." 

The  evidence  for  the  prartira^  ic  'Cannibalism  in  America  furnished  by 
archiEology  is  somewhat  less  rirrciuiHve  than  that  which  history  presents.' 
Bones,  supposed  to  be  the  remaire-  it  the  feasts  on  human  flesh,  are  found 
in  but  few  places  ;  and  e\'en  wmrr  fi)und,  other  h}-potheses  than  that  of 
cannibalism  maybe  oiTered  to  t'lniiiirr  tlieir  presence.  The  recitals  of  eye- 
witnesses of  these  horrid  orgi^-.Trim  wltich  we  have  abundantly  quoted. 
have  a  value  as  evidence  whirh  die  discovery  of  human  bones,  how  ever 
irregular  their  position,  peculin-dteir  fracture,  or  large  their  accumulation. 
cannot  possess.  Yet  the  cvujL:a;c:i  (offered  by  archaeologists  is  of  much 
worth. 


34 


i.-\:N\IBAI.I>M    in   north    ..  ,.j.j_.l-.% 


Tht  nii^iiz  important   testimony  is  that  c:  thr  lizz   Frotefsor  Jeffries 

AA'ATniru.  i2uit  tvhom  a  more  competent  authority  ai  «  .  f  :  .  ~r:ilt  to 
natnt:.  A- iiirly  o:;  [86 1.  Professor  W'yman  began  im  .  ./  .:  "  ■'  the 
shtll  liciCH-  :n  the  St.  John's  River,  in  Florida,  -\iitr  :;_.■-  :..  -Xir  .rj.- 
tionf  cd  fbi  rnore  important  collections,  he  came  to  liw  r-r- :.  .-  -  :'"._;  :>-c 
remaint-  3:unil  in.  them  prove,  so  fir  as  archarology  ci-:  ;".  -.  :.. _:  ::~e 
ancient  frwiilers  on  the  St.  John's  were  cannibair_  .\ritir  cfescr :  -  ^-  "..  - 
nutehrtit  po.sicioaof  the  bones  unearthed,  he  fuggesif  tie  re3:=cr:r  '.  .li:  .; 
him  tC'  titbr  feciirion.  \\"e  cannot  du  better  ihan  tc«  43ae  tiiese  focr  reaaons 
in  brie':: 

J-  Tilt  5»2aeswere  not  deposited  there  at  an  oirdHiiiuinr  burial  "  :  i.xL 
body..  Ie  tis-  case,  after  the  decay  of  the  flesh,  thert- -^  --ir-f  ':iz'r-:  - .—.  .:r  -  i 
a  certitrn  -.cier  in  the  position  of  the  parts  of  tbe  ~iVt  -- :_.  T..,  ;■  r.^^j 
\vould  !»£  inure,  .is  in  other  burials.  In  the  C2.f.t;s  "htr-t  c.z:icr.'z'^  ':.  :hey 
wert:.  crn  ifttt  coatxar\%  scattered  in  a  disorderly  mar  -  .  ■  :  -  .rn  r^c-:»  x.iny 
fragratrrrtr-..  imi  otten  some  important  portions  -srerit:  ssi::f~csg.  T". .  rri^t- 
ures,  a^  rw-iil  as  the  disorder  in  which  the  bone?  -srir:  fjCTLKi,  -  J..':iv 
existed  iC  tie  time  they  were  covered  up,  as  is  -^-jx-l  by  tlie  :  r  i- 
tion  oJ  tiiit  inken  ends,  which  had  the  same  disc '""i".'  -  •_-  the  r._:u--i 
surfacefi. 

z.  Tht  itiaeiT  were  broken  as  in  the  case  of  edible  ? ■"-,  is  tiie  deer 

and  the  ulapn'ir.  Tras  would  be  ncccssar)-  t:>  redrrf  tie  parts  t«>  a  s-tze 
corref^pcmorn^:  with  the  vessels  in  which  they  were  £•  ■_.  _ 

3.  Tht  irtakinj  up  of  the  bones  had  a  certiLi-:  in  :  ^-t  of  metliod: 
the  bead*  5C  the  humerus  and  femur  were  detached,  otf  rt  to  avoid  the 
trouble,  ctr  5r:ta  iijnorance  as  to  the  way.  of  disajt5r_l Ltirr:^  tie  joEnts. 
The  shaitf  :c  tiiese  bones,  as  also  those  <.>f  th-.  '  -z-im.  Jl- L  '..--.  were 
re^rularhr  "irriicei  through  the  middle. 

4,  Titrt.  '^  no  evidence  that  the  bones  were  :r  s..-  __.  .  i:'e  !ying 
exposed  igi'a  tie  ground,  by  v/ild  animals,  as  the  Trvr^r^  1.-  I  ;r:_Lr5.  If 
they  "U'ertr taiiir  broken,  one  might  reasonably  expect  ::  ~'  -  '\i  =:ar'<_-  :f 
teeth,  ban  art^tr  a  careful  examination  of  hundred?  erf  gioecief.  tiey  Liave  not 
been  seen  iix  i  -nngle  instance. 

It  lia?  iitsrr  suggested  that  the  quantity  of  thv  ':•  '  .-  —  :" ':  :  explained 


■wrthoirt  rttjiarfing-  them  as  remains  of  human  feasirv.     Vr^  1::  :i- : 
first  camt  t.:  _\_merica  it  is  known  that  many  of  the  n^iriref  Jr  i-i.  r>_ 
of  disnaenrbtrrrrg-  their  fallen  enem 
scalp?  a?  "mciii.es.     "  While  such 
■'  migirt  atxriuat  Dir  the  presence 
would  Dec  5ir  the  fragmentary   con 


T^-^ 


3cb 


C-\_\NIBALISM    IN    NORTH    AMERICA  35 

for  the  ^ystenaaaic  manner  in  which  all  the  bones  of  the  limbs  as  well  as  of 
the  other  part?  onf  die  skeleton  are  broken  up."  -^ 

The  chief  lesiiijiaice  furnished  by  archajology  of  the  custom  of  eatin«^ 
human  fle^h  iir-:ffi^  the  abori|^iues  of  New  England  has  lately  been  pre- 
sented by  Mr.  Mjinty  Hardy,  of  Brewer,  Maine.  It  is  founded  upon  his 
own  inveftigaiJC'itf  Ento  certain  shell  heaps  of  the  coast  of  Penobscot  Hay. 
Of  these  invi:iCijxnoni  he  thus  writes  to  the  Pcabody  Museum  of  Cam- 
bridge : 

••  After  diggmj  -fAime  twenty  feet  horizontally,  I  found  a  human  bone, 
a  femur,  and  i^fjur  by  some  twenty  or  thirt)'  more  bones  of  legs  and  arms, 
sternum,  and  pcctixoaij  ot  a  pelvis,  but  no  vertebnu  or  ribs.  The  long  bones 
nearly  all  lay  ia  :a  slanting  position,  many  of  them  broken,  and  the  cor- 
responding -pKii^  itther  missing  or  not  near  enough  to  them  to  be  indcnti- 
fied  as  bek>n^x]3i^  t«oi^ether.  They  had  no  more  apparent  connection  with 
each  other,  as  ttliikt  bones  of  skeletons,  than  any  heap  of  bones  among 
kitchen  refuse  ^R"^3CIId  have,  and  »vere  mixed  with  bones  of  moose  and 
beaver,  whose  l£iedin  were  found  in  considerable  numbers,  and  were  mixed 
with  ashes  an^d  trfimrarns  of  fires. 

*•  Belo-c-  liS  iiy£se  I  came  to  a  lower  human  jaw  lying  upon  the  top  of  a 
skull.  The  jaw  \caa- lying  teeth  side  up,  but  contained  but  one  tooth.  In 
working  carefalEj  round  the  skull,  which  was  placctl  crown  up,  I  found 
another  ^"kull  laiJ  ccport  its  side  with  the  part  which  joined  the  neck  pressed 
so  clofe  to  "the  irst  that  a  knife  blade  could  hardly  be  placed  between 
them  ;  on  taking dbemi  out,  the  jaw  fitted  to  the  one  on  which  it  la\-.  and  this 
had  but  one  loc<tBn  iini  the  upper  jaw.  The  under  skull  was  without  a  lower 
jaw,  neither  ^sonaM  I  find  any  near  it.  This  skull  had  nine  teeth  in  the 
upper  jaw.  Thcst  sfculls  rested  on  virgin,  yellow  earth,  which  showed  no 
traces  oi  nre,  or  <off  ever  being  disturbed.  A  piece  of  granite  projected  on 
one  side  of  the  njxni^Ett  skull,  and  the  skull  was  hard  against  it.  The  second 
skull  touched  liiis  <oa  one  side,  and  on  the  other  was  another  rock,  the 
two  skulls  being  s<o  closely  wedged  between  the  rocks  that  it  was  verj* 
difficult  to  reamcwne  them.  Above  them  on  one  side  I  saw  several  more 
bones  projecting  fir.im  the  shells :  but  not  having  time  for  more  extended 
search  I  caretully  inrirtterred  all  the  bones  exhumed  except  the  skulls  and 
the  bones  sent  viJicn  ^vrith  them  as  specimens." 

These  rnvesiagiiti'jns  do  not  prove  that  the  presence  and  position  of 
the  bones  so  f oami  are  the  result  of  cannibalistic  practices.  But  they  do 
offer  presuiriptiTTi'  evidence  that  the  shell-heap  people  of  Xew  England 

*  Swttndi  Annual  Report  of  Peabody  Museum,  p.  32,  note. 


CANMIlAI.IS.M    IN    NnK TH    A.MERUA 


were  addicted  to  tlic  citinj;  of  human  flesh,  as  certainly  were  tlie  races  of 
tile  same  a^'e  on  the  St.  John's,  and  as  were  several  of  tlie  nati\e  Indian 
tribes  of  the  North,  of  the  Pacific  coast,  of  Mexico,  ami  of  Central 
America. 

It  is  clear  that  the  motives  leadiiii;  different  races  into  the  custom  of 
dcvourint^  human  llesh  were  different.  With  some  it  was  eaten  as  food; 
with  some  it  was  eaten  as  part  of  a  relii^ious  ceremony  ;  with  others  it  was 
eaten  by  reason  of  superstition  ;  and  with  yet  others  it  was  eaten  as  an  act 
of  vengeance  to  a  fallen  foe. 

The  practice  of  eating  human  flesh  as  food  may  have  had  its  origin  in 
necessity.  Eaten  to  prevent  starvation,  and  found  to  be  good  (as  can- 
nibals affirm  it  is),  it  may  have  come  to  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  regular 
foods.  Bancroft  asserts  that  though  certain  tribes  of  New  Mexico  abomi- 
nated human  fiesh,  others  hunted  it  as  gamc.^  Yet  the  custom  is  more 
usual  among  cannibals  who  use  only  prisoners  of  war  for  food.  In  the 
Relations  of  the  Jesuits,  from  which  abundant  quotations  have  been  made, 
it  is  made  clear  that  the  Iroquois  and  other  tribes  devoured  only  enemies 
captured  in  battle. 

Tile  religious  idea  in  cannibalism  was  most  prominent  among  the 
n.itive  -Mexicans.  Their  historian  affirms  that  they  did  not  feed  on  human 
flesh  merely  to  gratify  appetite,  but  in  obedience  to  their  religion.  Ban- 
croft acknowledges  '*  that  it  is  difficult  to  determine  what  religious  ideas 
were  connected  with  the  almost  universal  practice  of  anthropophag}-. 
Whatever  may  have  been  the  original  significance  of  the  rite,  it  is  most 
probable  that  finally  the  body,  the  essence  of  which  (the  blood  poured  out 
upon  tlie  altar)  served  to  regale  the  god,  was  merely  regarded  as  the 
remains  of  a  divine  feast,  and  was  therefore  sacred  food."+  The  religious 
motive  seems  to  have  influenced  the  inhabitants  of  Nicaragua,  and,  indeed, 
many  of  the  ]\Iaya  natives,  to  make  a  food  of  human  flesh.  The  priest 
dismembered  the  body,  gave  the  heart  to  the  high-priest,  the  feet  and 
hands  to  the  king,  the  thighs  to  those  who  had  captured  the  prisoner,  the 
entrails  to  the  trumpeters,  and  the  remainder  to  the  people. 

Connected  with  the  religious  motive  in  cannibalism  is  that  represented 
by  the  general  term  superstition.  The  idea  was  common  that  by  devour- 
ing the  flesh  of  a  fallen  foe,  and  by  drinking  his  blood,  the  eater  became 
possessed  of  his  bravery.  A  Nootka  prince  told  the  Spaniards  that  the 
bravest  captains  ate  human  flesh  before  going  into  battle.  The  Hyper- 
boreans of  the  Pacific  coast  thought  that  by  eating  their  prisoners  taken  in 

*  A^iith,:  Naccs  of  th:  l\icifii  Co.ul.  i.  pp.  560,  575,  sSl, 
t  Bancroft's  Native  Jiaccs,  iii.  pp.  443-4. 


<t 


CANNIHALISM    IN    NORTH   AMKRUA 


■(' 


37 


war  tin y  -aincd  new  strcn-th  and  cncroy.  It  was  the  same  superstitious 
motive  that  led  the  warrior  to  eat  the  body  of  his  enemy  and  chir.k  his 
blood  warm. 

Vengeance,  also,  not  infrequently  sug.gested  the  eating  of  the  body  of 
a  foe  who  had  been  a  terror  to  his  destroyer.  Thus  the  destroyer,  so  far 
as  he  thought  possible,  annihilated  his  enemy.  The  Ilurons  in  their  horrid 
orgies  thus  wreaked  vengeance  on  the  braves  whom  they  had  vanquished. 
It  IS  not  improbable  that  among  many  races  tiiese  four  motives,-human 
flesh  eaten  for  food,  as  a  religious  rite,  from  superstition,  and  for  ven- 
geance,—were  mingled  in  the  practice  of  eating  human  flesh.  Having  its 
origin,  i)erhaps,  in  a  single  one  of  these  ideas,  the  custom  gradually  sug- 
ested  other  reasons  for  its  continuance. 


Cambridc;f.,  Jfass 


,^Z^ 


